U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said China abides by the terms of bilateral trade agreements and the United States constantly monitors China’s commitments to maintain stable trade relations.
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— With China, it’s always like this: we check, monitor and follow up on commitments. The commitments are very specific — Greer said this Sunday on Fox News’ “The Sunday Briefing”.
— So, all these things that we recently agreed with the Chinese are very concrete, we can monitor them quite easily and, so far, we see that they are respected.
Greer said China has already met “about a third” of its commitment to buy soybeans for this crop.
The Bloomberg news agency reported that following a series of orders placed in late October – the first this season – Chinese purchases of US soybeans appeared to have stagnated.
President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed in late October to extend the tariff truce, abolish export controls and reduce other trade barriers. But some elements of the deal — including soy purchases, the sale of social media app TikTok and increased export licenses for critical rare earths from China — remain in the works.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Greer held a video conference with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Friday, according to China’s official Xinhua News Agency.
During the conversation, the officials had an “in-depth and constructive” discussion in which they promised to maintain stable relations and address “respective concerns” regarding trade and the economy, the agency said.
Bessent said on CBS News’ Face the Nation on Sunday that China would not accelerate the purchases, but they should still take place this farming season, and said soybean prices have increased between 12% and 15% since the deal with China. He also said he sold his stake in a soy farm to comply with an ethics agreement.
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The Trump administration is expected to release its long-awaited farm aid plan this week, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a Cabinet meeting last Tuesday.
Asked whether chipmakers like Nvidia should supply China with advanced semiconductors — or whether that would pose a security risk to the United States — Greer said caution is warranted.
— My personal opinion is that we have to be very careful about this — Greer said on Fox News.
— We want positive business outcomes, but as policymakers we must ensure that national security comes first. That’s why you’ve heard President Trump talk about the types of chips that could be restricted. There is still open debate about where that line lies, and it evolves over time.
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